Month: May 2012

With Memorial Day still fresh on the minds of many Americans, Sen. Ron Wyden and the Oregon National Guard took the time Thursday to think about our veterans, and how to help them reintegrate into society after their time at war. They held a summit Thursday morning at the Bend Armory with the goal to

Five starting gates were stolen last weekend at the Smith Rock BMX Bike Club track in Redmond. But now, several days later, the members of the club are facing a depressing reality — and it?s not about the damage. “Don’t give up hope. Just always try and fight through it, and there’s always people out

High Desert Museum announced the launch of Blue Star Museums, a collaboration among the National Endowment of the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense, and more than 1,500 museums across America to offer free admission to all active duty military personnel and their families from Memorial Day through Labor Day. The High Desert

Two Bend residents allegedly returning from the Portland area with about $3,000 worth of heroin purchased there were pulled over and arrested by drug agents north of Bend late last week, officers said Wednesday. Central Oregon Drug Enforcement Team detectives stopped Robert Jennings Battles, 25, and Jaclyn Anne Huffman, 21, around 9:40 a.m. last Friday

Authorities are hunting for clues and Smith Rock BMX track operators, kids and families are upset about the latest costly vandalism to hit the Redmond track, just two weeks before a special season-opening race. Deschutes County sheriff?s deputies responded on Monday to a reported theft at the facility, located at 1610 NE Negus Way, said

Volunteers in Medicine is a nonprofit in Bend that helps Central Oregonians who don’t have insurance. The facility cannot function without their volunteer staff, and Wednesday they said they will be honoring several of their volunteers who have reached 500 hours of service or more. After Tom Barber retired from his job as a music

The city of Redmond, dealt a major economic blow by T-Mobile’s imminent call center departure, assured Wednesday that the 77,000-square-foot facility won’t stand vacant for even a day. Portland-based Consumer Cellular, touting itself as “the No. 1-rated cell phone service provider in the U.S.” and the exclusive wireless provider for AARP members, announced Wednesday that

As cases of child abuse and neglect continue to rise, a new therapy is being introduced to stop the numbers from growing in Deschutes County. Thanks to grant money from the Deschutes County Behavioral Health Department, Parent Child Interaction Therapy or PCIT services will start at MountainStar Relief Nursery in Bend. This will be the

Two drivers were taken to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries after a Madras man?s car crossed into oncoming traffic on Highway 97 north of Redmond Tuesday afternoon, nearly striking a Deschutes County sheriff?s deputy?s patrol car before hitting two others in what became a four-car crash, deputies said. Shortly after 4 p.m., the deputy told 911

Over the Memorial Day weekend, there were some very memorable sports records for High Desert high school track and field teams. Central Oregon had three state track and field champions. Not only did the Summit girls win their sixth straight state title, but the Summit boys won the 5A title for the second year in

From the reading of the names across the country to the laying of a wreath at Arlington National Cemetery, millions of American’s paused Monday to remember those killed serving our country. It was no different in Bend, as the bagpipes opened a memorial service held at the Deschutes Memorial Gardens. “Comrades, attention!” said the event’s

If you’ve ever tried to define what community and friendship is, the scene outside Redmond High School Monday night would be a good place to start. It was a night of food, laughs and, most importantly, homecoming. A teen’s freak accident just over a week ago united both the school and the community behind him.

The other side of this Memorial Day holiday is the high number of suicides among our returning veterans each year. The sad truth is, every 80 minutes, a veteran takes their life. And in Oregon, the suicide rate is even higher than the national average: 27 percent of suicides in the state are by veterans.

The Happy Girls Half Marathon and 5-k run began along the Deschutes River at 9 a.m. Sunday. The women were put through a test of endurance as they ran 13.1 miles. But they had a scenic route to enjoy, including panoramic mountain views, quiet trails in town and breezes past Bend’s iconic Deschutes Brewery. The

One man is trying to become the first person to visit all 50 U.S. capitals by self-powered means of transportation. He stopped by Bend on Sunday, on his way to coming from Salem. Roman Scaturro of Arizona began his adventure last month by kayaking from Juneau, Alaska. It took him over a month to get

An idea from a local college class at COCC helped raise funds for Central Oregon troops overseas. Chad Owens, who is taking a communications class, was assigned to do a project that would benefit the community. Owens, who has been deployed to war zones overseas four times in five years, received a box from Caring

What better way to get kids outside this summer than with running events? And Saturday, the Happy Little Kids race in Bend. Boys and girls ages 3 to 10 years old took part in the 1.5-K fun run. Each Happy Little Kid received a T-shirt and a bib number. But there was even more incentive

A new Central Oregon product for your lawn and garden was given away at Newport Avenue Market Saturday. It’s called ReGrow. ReGrow is a nutrient rich compost from Deschutes Recycling that is a result of compostable food material received from local places like Newport Avenue Market. The market began its composting program over a year

On this Memorial Day weekend,as they do every year, the Bend VFW and others place flags on each one of the veterans’ graves at Deschutes Memorial Gardens. They estimate about 750 veterans are buried at the cemetery . Boy Scouts from two troops and the Junior ROTC helped place the flags Saturday morning. It takes

Kyle Reed, the 18-year-old from Redmond who was nearly electrocuted while hunting last Sunday near Culver, returned home Friday from a Portland hospital. The teen had been recovering at Legacy Emanuel Medical Center since the accident nearly took his life . “People keep calling my mom and my sister, and I keep talking to them.”